Author: tsport100

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GM to Study Vehicle Sharing with Shanghai Jiao Tong University

General Motors China has signed a memorandum of understanding with Shanghai Jiao Tong University to collaborate on a vehicle sharing program featuring the Chevrolet EN-V 2.0 starting next year.

A fleet of EN-V 2.0 vehicles will be integrated with a multi-modal transportation system alongside bicycles, cars and shuttle buses at the university’s Minhang campus in Shanghai to evaluate the benefits and challenges of a vehicle sharing transportation model.

“The vehicle sharing program with Shanghai Jiao Tong University will allow us to assess the real-world application of the EN-V 2.0 as part of a vehicle sharing system,” said Matt Tsien, GM executive vice president and president of GM China. “We will apply these learnings to the development of future urban mobility transportation solutions, not just for China but for the world.”

"Electric vehicles represent the transportation mode of the future, but the big topic now is how to develop them," according to Yin Chengliang, vice president of the Shanghai Jiao Tong University Automotive Engineering School. "This project will explore a model that integrates electric vehicles with the transportation network and intelligent transportation system."

The Chevrolet EN-V 2.0 is the next generation of GM’s original Electric Networked-Vehicle (EN-V), which made its global debut at Expo 2010 in Shanghai. It can travel up to 40 kilometers on a single charge.

The Shanghai Jiao Tong University collaboration is a continuation of GM’s vision for sustainable urban mobility announced at Expo 2010. Shanghai Jiao Tong University is a comprehensive research-oriented university and one of China’s leading educational institutions. GM and Shanghai Jiao Tong University have collaborated on many automotive, training and development projects over the past two decades.

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Porsche Readying Tesla Model S Fighter

The German automaker is currently in the early stages of development for an EV that will target the Tesla Model S and will be a new dedicated fifth model range slotting beneath the existing Panamera. While details on Porsche’s first all-electric production vehicle are mostly being kept under wraps at the moment, it will likely be built on the automaker’s second-generation MSB platform that underpins the current Panamera.

It will have a shorter wheelbase than the existing Panamera sedan but will be a five-door hatchback, similar in style to the Panamera Sport Turismo concept that debuted at the 2012 Paris Motor Show. The company is hoping to keep it around 2,100 kg and its electric powertrain will provide similar performance as the Model S, though Tesla did just announced the more powerful all-wheel drive Model S P85D.

Porsche is aiming for a range of over 450 km and the company is expected to work with Audi, so we expect they will also use solid-state batteries.

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Audi Confirm Tesla Model S Rival with 450 km Range for 2017

According to a report by Auto Express, Audi is also looking to join the electric vehicle sedan market with its own offering sporting a 450 km (280-mile) all-electric range.

The vehicle is currently under development according to Audi’s Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg, who also revealed that it will arrive in 2017 as an all-new model.

In the interview, Hackenberg said that he was “able to re-engineer the R8 e-tron project and technology with the team” and confirmed that it will not be a sports car.

The German automaker will use next-generation batteries in order to achieve the 450 km range, technology that is said to have up to five times more energy density than the current batteries used in vehicles such as the Volkswagen e-Golf.

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Tesla in talks with BMW over car batteries & component alliance

Tesla Motors is in talks with Germany's BMW over a possible alliance in batteries and light-weight components, Tesla's Chief Executive Elon Musk told German weekly Der Spiegel.

In an interview published on Sunday, Musk described BMW's production of carbon fibre reinforced car body parts as "interesting" and "relatively cost efficient."

BMW uses carbon fibres from its joint venture with materials supplier SGL to make reinforced passenger cell parts for its i3 electric hatchback and i8 plug-in hybrid sports car.

Officials at BMW were not immediately available to comment.

"We are talking about whether we can collaborate in battery technology or charging stations," Musk was quoted as saying in the interview.

There were no further details on the specific nature of the alliance, however BMW and Tesla executives already met in June to discuss the creation of charging stations usable for different types of electric cars.

Rival Daimler, owner of the Mercedes brand, said last month it would continue to collaborate with Tesla even after selling its remaining four percent stake in the U.S. company. Tesla has also worked with Toyota on electric SUVs.

Tesla's billionaire co-founder Musk also told Der Spiegel that he expects Tesla to have a battery production plant in Germany in five to six years.

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Korean Companies Taking Lead in EV Battery Market

An increasing number of carmakers such as Nissan and Daimler are opting for Korean battery manufacturers’ products instead of doing the lithium-ion secondary battery business on their own. The trend is expected to be a boon for LG Chem, Samsung SDI, and SK Innovation in the fledgling eco-friendly car battery market.

The only German factory that produces battery cells for electric cars is closing. Within little more than one year, the company Li-Tec in Saxon Kamenz, will cease manufacture of battery cells. The company is a subsidiary of the Daimler Group.

The Li-Tec factory will close December 2015 but will be retained as a research location; the majority of the 280 employees will be transferred to the Deutsche Accumotive—also a wholly owned Daimler subsidiary—which manufactures battery packs. Accumotive is currently expanding its production capacity to build systems for the next generation of the electric smart among others. Cells are slated to come from LG Chem.

“Nissan has purchased EV batteries from AESC since 2009, but will diversify the supply sources to LG Chem and many more,” Renault Nissan Alliance Chairman Carlos Ghosn said in September. It is said that AESC’s products are approximately 15 percent more expensive than those of LG Chem.

These decisions come about because it is difficult for a company to realize the economy of scale and achieve price competitiveness on its own in the eco-friendly vehicle market. Battery manufacturers that have produced small batteries for use in smartphones and the like have more advanced technological strength, too. It is in this context that Hyundai Motor Company, Kia Motors, and BMW have procured battery cells from external sources from the get go.

At present, LG Chem’s customers include not only Hyundai and Kia but also about 20 automakers such as GM and Ford. Samsung SDI has done business with about 10, including BMW, as well. SK Innovation, which started relatively late, has supplied batteries for Kia Motors’ Soul EV, and set up a joint venture in China with the Beijing Automotive Group. The EV battery market is estimated to grow to US$11.9 billion by 2018.

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ELMOFO enter final round of the 2014 Australian eFXC Superbike Race Series

ELMOFO will have an entry in the last round of the 2014 Australian eFXC Superbike Race Series this weekend in the form of a recently purchased Brammo Empulse TTX.

This particular bike has enjoyed a lot of success in the US in the hands of Eric Bostrom. Elmofo will have local pro-rider Simon Galloway to race the bike in an effort to promote Brammo production bikes in Australia.

There should be a good mix of bikes at the final round at Eastern Creek including some modified production along with some super-high-powered privately built bikes.

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SUBARU VIZIV GT Vision Wheel-Motor powered series hybrid concept [VIDEO]

Subaru has revealed the digital-only Viziv GT Vision Gran Turismo, which will find its way into the Gran Turismo 6 on the PlayStation 3 video game system . It takes up the mantle from the Viziv Concept that debuted at the Tokyo motor show last year.

The virtual Viziv GT is powered (virtually) by a 2-liter boxer four featuring both direct injection and turbocharging to the tune of 591 imaginary horsepower.

The Viziv GT has all wheel drive with little lights over each fender that light up when the axle is receiving torque vectoring courtesy of three electric motors, one up front and two in the rear. Subaru compares it to their iconic "Symmetrical AWD" in an attempt to link it to their road-going cars, but this is a hybrid system unlike anything the company has previously worked on.

“By independently controlling each of the motor outputs, turning ability while cornering is drastically improved, while the torque vectoring lamps built into the fenders visualize its movement, Thus, as with any other Subaru, the car is made controllable for anyone driving the car, regardless of its extremely high performance levels.”

Maybe it's where the company is headed? Mitsubishi is already going down that road. Perhaps this is a sneak peek at a hybridized, CUV-like future for the iconic WRX and STI. Or it could just be a digital flight of fancy, which of course it is.

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Next Generation GS Yuasa lithium-ion battery triples energy density

GS Yuasa Corp. said Monday it has developed a next-generation lithium-ion battery with three times the capacity of existing products.

The battery uses sulfur as a key material for the positive electrode. The Kyoto-based company now aims to improve the durability of the silicon-based negative electrode, so it can commercialize the next-generation lithium-ion battery by 2020.

Sulfur is harmless to humans, cheap and found in abundance in nature. But it does not conduct electricity, making it difficult to obtain strong electric output from batteries using sulfur-based electrodes.

GS Yuasa succeeded in discharging the high-capacity battery by filling sulfur into small holes on carbon rods in order to make the element conductive, the company said.

“This battery can be manufactured at a lower cost,” said Shuji Hitomi, group manager at GS Yuasa’s research and development center. “If it is used in a car, the range (without recharging) would be greatly increased.”

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Germany exits EV Battery Cell Manufacture Business

The only German factory that produces battery cells for electric cars is closed. Little more than one year, the company Li-Tec in Saxon Kamenz will manufacture battery cells. The company is a subsidiary of the Daimler Group.

"Our cells are very good, but at current production figures too expensive", the Daimler-manager Harald Kröger justified the closure in an interview with SPIEGEL. Last week, Daimler had 250 employees internally announced the end of the factory, more than half should be able to remain in the group. Only mass production makes such factories profitable. Therefore, it was part of the Daimler-calculus that other auto companies participate and would leave produce in Kamenz cells for their e-Mobile. But the partners did not materialize.

Now the company changes its strategy. "We have realised that a car manufacturer does not have to produce the cells themselves," says Kroeger.

Li-Tec will be retained as a research location; the majority of the 280 employees will be transferred to the Deutsche Accumotive—also a wholly owned Daimler subsidiary—which manufactures battery packs. Accumotive is currently expanding its production capacity to build systems for the next generation of the electric smart among others. Cells are slated to come from LG Chem.

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VW Chairman thinks solid-state batteries can deliver 700 km range

Following persistent news leaks from 'highly placed insiders' about an all-electric version of Audi's upcoming Q8 sports SUV with 700 km battery range, VW Chairman Prof. Dr. Martin Winterkorn, has hinted at the battery technology Audi may use to achieve that range.

In a speech at Stanford University, during the award of the 3rd Science Award for Electrochemistry, Dr Winterkorn said he sees great potential in solid-state batteries.

"Increasing the specific energy of lithium-ion cells to as much as 380 Wh/l will reduce driving range drawbacks.

With a higher nickel content, much more will be feasible.

But we also need to intensify basic research into batteries with an even greater specific energy, such as solid-state batteries.

I see great potential in this new technology, possibly boosting the range to as much as 700 kilometers (1,000 Wh/l)."

In March we reported that VW were bench testing new battery chemistry capable of providing "between three and four times the power" from a given capacity. This would mean up to 80kWh from a similar volume occupied by the current Golf Blue-e-motion's 26.5kWh battery pack.

Dr Heinz-Jakob Neusser, VW board member responsible for development, speaking at the Geneva motor show, refused to name the battery chemistry, but doesn’t deny it is a lithium-air unit, which are capable of delivering huge amounts of power, but are in the very early stages of development.

Given Dr Winterkorn's statement that current energy density with lithium-ion batteries, which allow a range of 190 kilometers, is 260 Wh/l and in the same speech he references solid-state batteries @ 1,000 wh/l, a 4x increase, I think it becomes clear this is the chemistry VW are bench testing.

The Science Award Electrochemistry was initiated by BASF and Volkswagen in 2012. The aim being to foster exceptional scientific and engineering achievements in electrochemistry and to provide an incentive for the development of high-performance energy storage.

Source: VW